As the euthanasia debate heats up in New Zealand, so has criticism of some of the advocacy, including material found in a Catholic cathedral. In Canada, people of faith have much to be critical about in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s edict about government funding for a summer jobs program. In Christchurch, a city still recovering from devastating earthquakes several years ago, a new church has offered a ray of sunshine, but it’s not so positive for Pope Francis when one looks at his work to tackle child sexual abuse — highlighted again on his recent trip to Chile. As always, Anna, Don, James and Gavin offer something a bit lighter after an intense but important discussion about some of the big Catholic stories of the month.

As 2018 gets under way, Pope Francis has been very clear in his advice to Vatican ambassadors — uphold the family and protect all life. He’s also been clear about people’s obligations to refugees and asylum-seekers, while acknowledging that some people can fear “the other”. In New Zealand, there’s a call for an inquiry into child abuse to include religious organisations, and in Australia, a new sculpture is causing a little confusion, but also raising awareness. Join Anna, Don, James and Gavin for the first episode of the year.

Pope Francis has expressed optimism that 2017 can be a good year while also acknowledging the deadly start to the year in Turkey and the challenge of people embracing peace and rejecting hatred. The Pope has also called for bishops to redouble their efforts in stamping out child sexual abuse in the Church. The Vatican is looking to strengthen ties with China, but China has its own views of how the Church should be allowed to operate in the Communist country. Cardinal John Dew wants to strengthen the Church’s ties with young people, showing them what a life in service of others can offer. In Sri Lanka, a Christmas carol service offered something a bit different, with the wrong Hail Mary lyrics printed in the hymn booklet. Join Don, James and Gavin for another wide-ranging episode of The 15th Station.

Somewhat recurrent themes on The 15th Station — clerical abuse and the state of the US presidential race — show their face again in this month’s episode. Pope Francis has taken steps to make the removal of negligent bishops more straightforward, despite some counter-productive efforts in the US on statutes of limitations. Former NZ Prime Minister Helen Clark says the country offers a model for religious tolerance at about the same time Donald Trump is accused of lacking in that virtue. The holiness of a French priest who served in New Zealand and the humour of Jim and Jeanne Gaffigan might save us.

In this month’s episode, the upcoming papal encyclical on ecology and the environment, to be released on June 18, takes top billing. As Vatican-watcher John Allen points out, there are likely to be a number of false claims in the media when Laudato Sii is released. The panel — James, Helen, Don and Gavin — also talk about the changing demographics of Kiwis, new measures to hold bishops accountable for failing to protect children and the “Yes” vote to same-sex marriage in Ireland. And the show ends with a reflection on TV’s 1980s hard man Mr T and his Christian faith. Enjoy the show.

The Pope conducting a mass wedding ceremony is usually grounds enough for big news, but when some of the couples are announced to have been cohabiting and having had children before tying the knot, it creates even more headlines. Lucy, James and Gavin are on the case, wrestling with the tricky issue, as well as looking at Archbishop John Dew’s reflection on the state of New Zealand politics, a willingness for more NZ victims of clerical sex abuse to come forward and Pope Francis’s latest first — an international Google Hangout with a group of young people. The show concludes with an uplifting story of grace under difficult circumstances. Enjoy the show.

In the July 2014 episode of The 15th Station, Lucy, James and Gavin venture from the sad to the joyous, the sacramental to the sporting, the saintly to the shady. Pope Francis’s meeting with sex abuse victims, the promotion of Baptism for students in Catholic schools and the Pope’s excommunication of the mafia are all covered in this show. The panel also covers the papal World Cup Final — between Benedict’s Germany and Francis’s Argentina — and discusses the efforts that may lead to New Zealand’s first saint. Learn more about the film How Far is Heavenby clicking here.

It was one of the most newsworthy moments of Pope Francis’s pontificate — the interview heard around the world. When the Holy Father sat down with fellow Jesuit priest Fr Antonio Spadaro, the two discussed a wide range of topics, and much of what was spoken about became water-cooler conversation around the world. James, Don and Gavin chat about that interview, Pope Francis’s intervention to save lives in Argentina a couple of decades ago and Pope Benedict’s decision to write a letter to a journalist who had questioned the former Pope’s efforts to combat abuse. Those stories and more in this month’s episode of The 15th Station.

To cover possibly the biggest story in the history of The 15th Station, we had to think big. So we went even more international than normal, with Lucy in Asia and Gavin in Australia joining studio-bound James and Brendan to discuss the Pope’s surprise announcement, start a bit of crystal-ball gazing and reflect a little on Benedict’s papacy. The Los Angeles archbishop’s decision to relieve his predecessor of his duties, a milestone Mass in New Zealand and an unusual Catholic school oath also fill a bumper episode — complete with technical difficulties.

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The 15th Station is our active monthly news podcast. We get a panel of Kiwi Catholics together to provide a Catholic perspective on the news and current events of the month.

Catechiwi is our archived catechesis podcast where we get a guest theologian from around the country or the world to speak on an aspect of the Catholic Faith.

Ignition leverages our partnerships with organisations like Hearts Aflame to provide a back catalogue of amazing lectures and talks from international speakers. We divide these talks up into multi-part podcasts.